


Space Mall Adventure

by Eastofthemoon



Series: Clone Kid [3]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Family, Fluff, Friendship/Love, Gen, Humor, Original Character(s), Parenthood, Team as Family, spacemall
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-04
Updated: 2018-08-04
Packaged: 2019-06-21 18:52:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,931
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15564234
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Eastofthemoon/pseuds/Eastofthemoon
Summary: In need of new clothes, the Paladins decide to take a detour at the space mall.  Ryou is not thrilled with this idea..until he ends up on his own adventure.





	Space Mall Adventure

“Okay, Shiro,” Hunk said as he finished the last connection, “how is that feeling?”

Shiro frowned as he flexed the robetic fingers and moved the arm around. “Feels solid enough.”

“Does anything feel off?” Pidge said as she moved in closer. “We can make adjustments.”

Shiro stood up as he punched it up in the air and gave a small smile. “Nope, feels good.” He gripped the wrist. “Although, not sure if I would trust this in a fight.”

His arm was flexible, but it was too light and Shiro didn’t feel confident it could take a beating like his old arm could.

“No, and we don’t suggest you should,” Hunk said as he shut his tool kit. “This was just a rush job so you had something to work with.”

Pidge nodded as sat on the ground. “Yeah, Hunk and I got a better design for you in the works, but we need proper materials for it.”

“Which you won’t be able to find until we reach reach Earth,” Shiro concluded as he rotated his shoulder.

“Yeah, so don’t go picking any fights with Galra generals,” Hunk said and frowned. “Which in our line of work is going to be tricky.”

Shiro nodded. “Still, thanks guys, this will be a big help-”

He heard movement from behind. Shiro casually glanced and saw a small boot sticking out from behind a tree. He smirked and lifted his finger to Hunk and Pidge. 

“On that note,” he said as he sat on the log, “what do you guys plan to do once we get to Earth?”

He heard more movement. Pidge and Hunk frowned until they glanced behind Shiro and both grinned.

“Well, I’m definitely calling up my mom,” Hunk said as he leaned back. “I can’t wait to show her the new recipes I got.”

Shiro remained still as he heard the small footsteps approached.

“I need to call my mom too,” Pidge said as she crossed her arms. “She’s probably not too thrilled I went up to space without telling her.”

The footsteps were right behind him as Shiro resisted to giggle. “Well, I’m sure-”

“Got you!” Ryou declared as he tackled him from behind.

Shiro gave a shocking gasp as he tumbled to the ground. “Oh no, I’ve been captured!”

Ryou giggled as he climbed around and sat on Shiro’s chest. “You’re my prisoner now!”

“Am I?” Shiro said as he wrapped his arms around Ryou. “Or are you mine?” Shiro then proceed to blow raspberries on Ryou’s cheek. The boy squealed as he squirmed in response. 

“Ha! Hey, that’s cheating!” Ryou declared as he giggled.

“Ryou, go for the neck,” Pidge said as she leaned back. “That’s his weakness.”

Shiro gasped. “Pidge, you traitor!”

It was too late. Ryou grinned as he extended his small fingers and tickled. Shiro laughed as he let go of Ryou and rolled to his side. “Okay! Okay! I surrender!”

Ryou tossed his fists up in triumph. “Ha! I win!” 

Shiro panted as he sat up and adjusted Ryou so he was in his lap. “Yup, sure did, Kiddo.”

“Aw,” Lance declared as he walked up with Keith and Allura. “Did we miss another tickle attack?”

“Yeah, although Ryou won this round,” Hunk said and pointed to Shiro. “Also, we got Shiro’s substitute arm working.”

“Which gives us one less thing to worry about,” Shiro said as Ryou climbed off. “Are we all set to go?”

Keith nodded. “Romelle, Coran and Krolia got everything packed up.”

Lance cleared his throat. “Although, we have decided we are going to make a quick stop somewhere.”

Shiro raised an eyebrow. “Oh?”

Allura clasped her hands together and seemed rather gleeful. “Well, we were checking the maps and we’re not too far off from the space mall.”

Ryou blinked. “You mean the place where you got Kaltenecker?”

“You got it, little man,” Lance said as he kneeled. “We figured we could stop by there real quick.”

“Why?” Shiro said as he crossed his arms over his chest. “We’re good for supplies.”

“And that’s what I keep arguing,” Keith said with defeated sigh.

“Yeah, sure we got all the basics,” Lance said as he shook a finger, “but we need new clothes.”

“Clothes?” Shiro asked.

“For Ryou, Keith and most likely Krolia,” Lance stated.

Ryou frowned as he tugged at his oversized shirt. “But my clothes are fine.”

Shiro gave a wince as he rubbed his neck. “They are rather baggy on you.” They were originally spare clothes Coran had dug up. Shiro had been thinking it would be nice to get the kid clothes that fit him better. 

“Agreed,” Pidge remarked as raised an eyebrow. “But why are Keith and Krolia on the list?”

“If I were to guess,” Hunk said as he raised a hand, “it’s because Krolia has only has her Galra uniform. That’s probably going to cause some misunderstandings if we’re not careful and Keith only has his Blade of Marmora outfit.”

“Which still fits me just fine,” Keith argued.

Lance rolled his eyes. “Dude, you need proper chill out clothes and we all know your old clothes don’t fit you anymore thanks to your mega growth spurt.”

“I believe Lance is right,” Allura said. “I mean Coran could lend you some of the spare clothes he took, but I imagine his style isn’t quite what you’re looking for.”

Keith opened and shut his mouth before he gave a subtle growl. “No, not exactly.”

Ryou looked at Keith and smiled. “Although, it be real funny to see Keith dressed as Coran.”

Hunk chuckled. “Man, I would pay to see that. Oh! Double if he got a little mustache too.”

The group laughed as Keith rolled his eyes. “Anyway, point is, we figured we could stop by the mall real quick.”

“Yes,” Shiro said slowly, “but it’s a bit risky to park the lions so close to the mall.” 

Back when they had performed the Voltron Show there, they had used a transport ship since bringing the lions there would attract too much unwanted attention. Those transport ships got blown up along with the castle.

“We don’t need all of the lions,” Allura voiced as she looked to Pidge. “I thought perhaps Pidge could transport us there in the Green Lion.”

“And then I just have it remain in stealth mode until we leave,” Pidge concluded and nodded. “Yeah, that be doable.”

“So, wait,” Ryou said with a pout. “Are we going clothes shopping?”

“Looks like it,” Shiro said as he ruffled Ryou’s hair. 

The boy wrinkled his nose. “That sounds like the opposite of fun.”

“Oh, it won’t be so terrible,” Allura said as she smiled. “It’s rather exciting to turn on new things. I’m positive you’ll have plenty of fun.”

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Ryou yawned as he leaned against the wall. “Aren’t we done yet?”

“Almost,” Shiro said he went through the rack and held up another shirt. “Mind standing straight again?”

Ryou sighed, but complied as he held out his arms and turned around. Shiro compared the shirt to his back and nodded. “This one looks like it’ll fit.”

“Can I go try it on then?” Ryou asked as he lowered his arms.

“In just a tic,” Allura said as she held up some pants. “Just need a couple more items.”

“But you already got five shirts and three pants for me to try on,” Ryou said as he tossed his arms up.

“Yes, but it’s more efficient to take all of the clothes to the changing stall at once rather than one at a time,” Allura said and paused. “Lance, I found another potential shirt for Keith!”

“Sweet! Toss it over!” Lance called out as he shoved a bundle of clothes into Keith’s arms. “He’s about to go try this stuff on.”

Ryou felt rather justified in his annoyance as he saw Keith’s eyes twitch. _At least it’s not just me._

He sighed as he stared out the window. He wondered if Pidge, Romelle, Hunk, and Coran were having any more fun helping Krolia shop for clothes, but he sincerely doubt it.

He watched shoppers drift as he pressed his forehead against the glass. This was so dumb. Right outside this store was an ultra cool spacemall for him to explore and he was stuck here to get clothes. 

Ryou wished he could check out the place, but Shiro had already told him no.

“This place is too big,” he had said as they left the Green Lion. “Way too easy to get lost in there.”

“I wouldn’t get lost,” Ryou muttered. “I’m not a little kid. I can-”

Suddenly, he trailed off. A blue alien was carrying a large cart that appeared to have a large furry animal of some kind sleeping inside.

“Whoa,” Ryou muttered. Could it be a dog? Or maybe some kind of alien cat?

He chewed his bottom lip. Should he go see and ask? 

_I probably shouldn’t,_ he thought, _but it’s just outside the store. I could run out and come right back._

Ryou turned and saw Shiro was busying with Allura as Keith stepped out of the changing stall. He slowly inched his way towards the entrance and bolted. 

_I’ll be right back,_ he vowed. _They won’t even notice I’m gone._

He ran after the alien and didn’t stop until he caught up. “Hey, Mister!” He called out and waved.

The alien paused, turned and gave a smile. “Well, hello,” he greeted as he stopped the cart. “Is there something I can do for you?”

Ryou slowed to a halt as he caught up and pointed to the crate. “I was just wondering what you got in there?”

The alien chuckled. “Oh, I’m just bringing this wormzit to my pet store,” he explained as he patted the cage. 

Ryou peeked inside and saw a cat like creature with three eyes yawned in his face. “Whoa, is it dangerous?”

“None at all,” the alien replied. “They’re some of the laziest creatures you can buy. Big, but very low stress pets.” He pointed ahead. “On that note, I do have some kozian cubs at my shop too if you wanted to see them.”

“Yes, please,” Ryou said as the alien began to walk again. “What other animals do you got there?”

“Oh, not a lot, I just have a small shop,” the alien said as he placed a hand over his chest. “But I have the best pet kibble you could buy in the universe.”

Ryou grinned and didn’t bother to look back and see just exactly how far he was getting from the shop.

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“Okay, Keith, now spin turn around,” Lance instructed.

Keith placed his hands on his hips. “Why?”

“Uh because we need to check it looks both in the front and back?” Lance said as he spun his finger. “Just do it, man.”

Keith gave an unimpressed look before he did as he was told and turned around. “There happy?”

Lance ignored the comment as he grasped his chin and nodded. “Yeah, I think those will do.”

“Agreed, which is good because they’re on sale,” Allura said as she picked up the other clothing. “We are on a tight budget.”

Shiro grinned as he picked up Ryou’s clothes. “Alright, buddy, looks like it’s your turn.” 

He turned around expecting to see Ryou still sulking, but he wasn’t there. Frowning, Shiro glanced side to side and felt panic rise up as he looked around.

“Uh,” Shiro asked as he sweated. “Where is he?”

Allura, Keith and Lance stopped talking as they looked around. All their eyes widened as none of them spotted the boy.

“I don’t see him,” Allura stated.

“Hey, let’s not just to conclusions,” Lance said as he held up his hands. “Maybe he’s just hiding.”

“This isn’t exactly a big shop to hide in,” Keith retorted.

Shiro swallowed and looked to the alien sales clerk sitting at the counter. “Hey, did you see a little boy run off?”

The alien looked up from the book it was reading and pointed. “Yeah, he ran out the door awhile ago.”

Shiro choked. “What? And you didn’t say anything?”

“I’m not a babysitter,” the alien shot back. “Also the kid wasn’t exactly an infant.”

Shiro fumed as he stepped forward to argue, but Lance blocked him. “Whoa, calm down, Shiro,” Lance said. “Ryou probably just snuck out for a tic.”

“If that’s the case why isn’t he back yet?” Allura asked.

Keith cringed. “Because maybe he got lost? This place is like a maze.”

Shiro took a deep breath to calm his heart. “We better go search for him.”

“He couldn’t have gotten far,” Allura said as she picked up some of Ryou’s clothes. “You and Lance go on ahead while Keith changes and I pay for these clothes.”

“Okay, sounds good,” Shiro said as he dashed out the store vowing to have words with the kid once they found him.

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“Thanks for showing me the animals,” Ryou said as he waved.

The alien laughed and waved back. “My pleasure! Feel free to come back anytime, sonny. I love the company.”

Ryou smiled as he left the store. _I’m going to have to show this place to the others,_ he thought. _But first have to get back to them._

He looked up the right, but didn’t see the clothing shop. Ryou then looked to his left and felt dread settle inside. He didn’t see the shop that way either.

“Uh..okay,” Ryou muttered as he rubbed his neck. “So..I guess I wandered a bit further than I thought.” He turned and head to the right. “I’ll just walk up this way and if I don’t spot it I’ll try the other way-”

He froze. At the next corner the path broke up into three different directions. He swallowed. Ryou had a sinking feeling the same thing would happened in the other direction. He vaguely remembered taking a couple of turns as he followed the alien, but he couldn’t remember which direction he took.

“Uh oh,” he muttered. “I might be in trouble.”

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“Did you find him?” Shiro asked as he raced up to the others.

“No,” Allura said as she held the bags tightly. “I take it you haven’t either.”

Shiro shook his head. This wasn’t good. What if Ryou was scared and crying because he was lost? What if someone had decided to snatch him? What if-

He felt Lance place a hand on his shoulder. “Hey, he’s probably okay,” Lance said with a smile. “I’ll bet you anything he’s found something fun and just lost the track of the time.”

Shiro’s eyes narrowed. If that was true, then Ryou was going to be grounded until he was 30.

“Is it possible he’s in the food court?” Keith asked. “We did agree that’s where we meet the others once we were done.”

Shiro shut his eyes and nodded. “That’s true.”

“Then let’s head there first,” Allura said as she lead the way. “It’s about time to meet up with the others anyway.”

“Yeah, alright,” Shiro said as he followed and tried to ignore the knot of worry in his stomach.

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Ryou stared at the mall map for the fifth time and slumped. He couldn’t make heads or tails of it. He had tried running up and down the different paths, but only ended up more lost.

He thought of going back to the pet shop and ask the sales clerk for directions, he doubt the guy would have mind. However, in his panic of randoming going in different directions he couldn’t remember how to get back to the pet shop either. 

“I got to pay attention to my surroundings better,” Ryou grumbled as he crossed his arms. “Shiro’s going to kill me.”

He bit his lower lip as he looked at the nearby shoppers. The logical thing to do was to ask for directions, but who should he ask? Shiro had always told him not to talk to strangers, but how else was he suppose to find his way back?

Then, to his right he spotted a kid sitting on a bench. He seemed Galra and was preoccupied playing some kind of game in his hands. There were no adults around him either. 

_He seems safe to talk to,_ Ryou thought. _He’s a kid like me...even if I’m a clone._ There was a bit of bitterness to that last part, yet Ryou brushed it aside as he approached.

“Um...hi,” Ryou said.

The Galra kid jumped slightly as he glanced up from his game. “Hi?”

“Sorry to bug you, but do you know how to get back to that small clothing store?” Ryou asked.

The Galra kid frowned as he lowered his game. “Which one?”

Ryou blinked. “Huh?”

“There’s at least twenty of them on this floor,” the kid replied.

“Oh,” Ryou said as he sweated. “Um..the one with the star as part of it’s logo?” He remembered that was part of the sign.

“That narrows it down to five,” the kid replied. “Do you know the name?”

Ryou growled as he buried his face into his hand. _Great, just great! Why didn’t I pay attention?_

The kid’s face softened as he tucked his game into a backpack. “You’re lost aren’t you?”

Ryou choked and attempted a smile. “N-no.”

The kid shot him a hard look and Ryou found himself caving. “Fine, alright. I am lost.”

“Yup, classic case,” the kid said as he stood up and placed the backpack over his shoulders. “Come on, I’ll take you to my dad.”

Ryou blinked. “What?”

“My dad works here and he deals with lost kids all the time,” the boy replied and held up a hand. “Name’s Gackon by the way.”

Ryou looked at the hand and then offered his to shake. “I’m Ryou.”

Gackon smiled as he shook the hand and pointed over his shoulder. “Follow me and stay close. Easy to lose people if you don’t know your way around.”

“I’m seeing that,” Ryou said as they walked and then frowned. “Wait, your dad works here? But he lets you be out in the mall by yourself?”

“Yeah, but today is a bit of an exception,” Gackon said as he tucked his hands behind his head. “My mom had to go take care of my aunt, so I had to come with dad to work.” He cleared his throat and placed a hand over his chest. “I was given clear instructions to not leave the mall and to check in with him every two vargas.” He shrugged. “Besides that, I can go where I want.”

“Whoa,” Ryou said as impressed. “No way would my uncle let me do that. I wanted to go exploring by myself but he said I would get lost.”

“Which you did,” Gackon said with a teasing smile.

Ryou blushed. “...Yeah.”

Gackon gave a shrug. “It happens. How did you get lost anyway?”

“We were shopping for clothes,” Ryou started.

“Ah,” Gackon said with an understanding nod. “Say no more. That is the most boring kind of shopping ever.”

“I know, right?” Ryou said as he tugged at his shirt. “And my clothes are fine. I don’t get why I needed new ones.”

He would have continued the rant, but then something flashed out of the corner of his eye. Ryou turned and saw the flash had come from a glowing machine inside a shop. He stopped as it dawned on him that there were other various machines glowing and making noises as people were slamming buttons on them.

Ryou tugged Gackon by the arm and pointed. “What is that?”

Gackon blinked, looked to where Ryou pointed and frowned. “The game centre. It’s where you can play a bunch of different games.”

“So, like an arcade?” Ryou said as his eyes widened.

“If that’s what they’re called where you’re from sure,” Gackon said and scratched his head. “Have you never seen one before?”

Ryou wanted to say that he did, but shut his mouth. He did know what one was, but he never actually played in one. How could he when he was only a few months old..or was it weeks? The Paladins had never been quite certain on how long exactly he’d been growing in his tube.

“Ryou?” Gackon asked.

“It’s nothing,” Ryou said quickly, “but no I haven’t.”

Gackon’s eyes widened as if Ryou had just admitted to never having seen the stars before, but then they narrowed. “Alright, we’re fixing that right now.” He reached into his backpack and brought out a small bag.

“What’s that?” Ryou asked as Gackon placed it into his hands.

“Tokens to play,” Gackon said as he began to tug Ryou towards the game centre. “You have got to play some games.”

Ryou held his ground and tugged back. “I can’t take your tokens!”

“Sure you can,” Gackon as he shrugged and puffed out his chest. “My dad is friends with the owner and he gives free tokens all the time. It’s not hard to get more.”

Ryou stroked his thumb against the small bag. It was tempting. He could run in and be like a regular kid. He then shut his eyes and shook his head. 

“I can’t,” Ryou said as he slumped. “I should really find my way back to my uncle.”

Gackon let go and crossed his arms over his chest. “Let me ask you something, are you going to get in trouble for wandering off?”

Ryou sighed and nodded.

“Then all the more reason to,” Gackon said as he moved behind Ryou and shoved. “If you’re going to get in trouble anyway, then make certain it was worth it.”

Ryou blinked as he slowly moved towards the game centre. “That’s...a fair point.”

“Of course it is,” Gackon said as he took Ryou by the hand and pointed forward. “Come on! We’ll just play a couple of games and then go see my dad.”

“Y-yeah,” Ryou said and then his face brightened. “We won’t be super long.”

Ryou found himself smiling as Gackon lead him to one of the game consoles. Before he realized it, he had shoved in a token and started to play.

This wouldn’t take long. Shiro and the others probably hadn’t even realized he was gone yet.

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“Ryou’s lost?!” Romelle cried.

Hunk almost choked on his snack until Lance patted his back so he could swallow. “Hey, don’t yell so loud.”

“Sorry,” Romelle said with a blush, but then turned back to Shiro. “How long has he been missing?”

“Too long,” Shiro said as he looked to Krolia, “and you’re certain he hasn’t come by here?”

In her new simple shirt and pants, Krolia nodded. “Yes, and we’ve been waiting here awhile.”

Shiro felt the small wave of panic rise again as his fists tightened. Ryou could be anywhere by now. 

Romelle hugged herself. “W-what if someone has taken him?”

“That’s what I’m worrying,” Shiro said as he looked to Pidge. “Is there anyway we could track him down?”

Pidge blinked and tilted her glasses. “Um..not really. Although, Hunk and I have been planning on giving him a tracker for this kind of situation, but we hadn’t finished designing it yet, but maybe-”

“Whoa, whoa,” Lance said as he raised his hands. “First off, we don’t know if Ryou was taken. The kid is very likely still in the mall, and if he was anything like I was at his age, is probably having the time of his life.”

“He could,” Krolia said as she narrowed her eyes, “but he could also be in danger.”

“We need to make certain which it is then,” Allura stated. 

Coran grasped his chin as he leaned back in his chair. “Perhaps if we contact security they can help us locate him.”

Hunk cringed. “Um..you do realize that means we’ll have to talk to Varkon, right?”

The paladins shared a collective sighed. Varkon had eased off on them since their first mall visit, but he always insisted they were up to no good whenever he stumbled upon them in the mall. It was rather amazing he allowed them to set up the Voltron Show there at all.

“We don’t exactly have much choice,” Keith stated, “besides if there is anyone that knows this place inside out, it’s him.”

“Yeah, and it’s a missing kid,” Lance said as he stuffed his hands into his pockets. “That’s like one of the main jobs of a mall cop.”

Shiro took a deep breath and nodded. “It does sound like our best option so far.”

“Worse case, he does have access to security cameras,” Pidge said as she stood up and picked up the bags. “We could use those to track down where Ryou went.”

_And maybe see who took him,_ Shiro thought grimly, but tried to hold back from jumping to conclusions.

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Gackon cheered as Ryou beat the high score. “That’s awesome! I’ve never seen anyone take this on so fast.”

Ryou blushed as he laughed. “Guess I’m a bit of a natural, huh?”

“No kidding,” Gackon said in disbelief. “And you’ve seriously never played games before?”

Ryou shook his head, but a small part of him wondered if Shiro was always naturally good at video games. He wasn’t certain if he wanted to know that or not. Perhaps this was something that was all him.

“One more round?” Gackon said as he held up a token.

Ryou shook his head. “Thanks, but we really should find my uncle.”

Gackon frowned, but tucked the token back into the bag. “Yeah, okay, but I may need to grab a snack first. I’m starving.”

“Snack,” Ryou muttered but then gasped as he snapped his fingers. “The food court!” 

He seized Gackon by his shoulders as another kid moved in on the game. “I just remembered! My family planned to head there once they were done shopping!”

Gackon blinked and then snapped his fingers. “Oh! So, they might be waiting for you there!”

Ryou nodded, but then cringed. “Unless..is there more than one food court?”

“Nope, just the one,” Gackon said as he lead the way. “Let’s go! If you meet them there now, I’ll bet you’re uncle will give you points for being so smart!”

“I somehow doubt it,” Ryou said as he followed. 

“Hey, you got to be positive,” Gackon said as he began to run. 

“Hey, wait up!” Ryou yelled as he chased after the Galra and hoped that his friend was right.

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Varkon tapped his fingers against his desk as he stared at the group. “How do nine people lose one child?” He his landed on Shiro. “I didn’t even realize you had a kid.”

“He’s my nephew,” Shiro added quickly. He really didn’t feel the need to tell Varkon the whole cloning situation. “But it doesn’t matter how we lost him. It happened and we need to find him now!”

Varkon sighed as he reached for a tablet. “Alright, calm down. First let me get a description of the kid and then I’ll put the full mall on lockdown.”

Allura frowned as she tilted her head. “You would go that far?”

Varkon huffed and shook the tablet at her. “Of course! Standard procedure in locating a missing child, but we’re wasting time.”

Shiro took a deep breath as he felt relief. It was good to see Varkon was taking this so seriously.

“Now, descripsion?” Varkon asked.

Shiro cleared his throat. “He has black hair, human, 10 years old-”

Varkon choked as he held up his hand. “Hold it? Ten? Are you certain?”

Shiro chewed his bottom lip. Ryou wasn’t actually ten, but he at least looked like it. It was as accurate as they could describe him. “Yes?”

Varkon rubbed his eyes as he stood. “For the love of- the way you guys came charging in here, I thought you lost a toddler.”

“What difference does that make?” Romelle asked hotly.

“Because at that age kids manage themselves,” Varkon stated as he walked over to his console panel. “I’ll put the mall in lockdown if I have to, but I’m willing to bet the kid just saw something shiny and left without thinking.”

“Oh?” Lance said as he smirked. “Know from experience?”

Varkon huffed. “Yeah, my son has a tendency of doing the same thing.”

The group went dead silent. Gradually, their brains processed on what they just heard and Hunk was the first to speak. “You..have a kid?”

Varkon narrowed his eyes. “Why do you sound so surprised?”

Keith was about to speak except Lance swiftly cut him off. “Nope, we’re not going to waste time on this.”

Varkon rolled his eyes as he hit a few buttons and looked to Shiro. “What’s the kid’s full name for me to call him?”

“Ryou Shirogane,” Shiro replied.

“Huh, weird name,” Varkon said as he cleared his throat. “You lot go wait outside the office. Bet you anything the kid will come running once he hears this.”

“If he hears it,” Shiro muttered darkly as they left.

If Ryou didn’t appear, Shiro didn’t know what to do.

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Ryou’s heart sank. He looked left to right, and then right to left. There were a bunch of different aliens here eating, including a very long line at some place called Verpit Sal’s, but he didn’t see any sign of his family.

“Guess they’re not here,” Ryou said as he rubbed his neck.

“Looks like it,” Gackon said as he patted his shoulder. “Looks like my dad is the only option.”

“Yeah,” Ryou said as he shut his eyes. “Although, maybe we should wait a few tics? They might not have arrived yet.”

Gackon clicked his tongue. “I don’t know,” he said as he reached into his backpack. “Let’s just grab a snack first. I think I got enough cash for both of us.”

Ryou shook his head. “Thanks, but you’ve done enough. Besides, fairly certain Hunk will be making dinner for us once we’re done shopping here.”

Gackon paused as he tilted his head. “Hunk?”

Suddenly, a bell echoed through the mall.

“Attention,” broadcasted a voice, “would Ryou Shirogane please report to mall security. Your uncle is waiting for you.”

Ryou’s eyes widened as he locked on Gackon’s.

“I repeat, would Ryou Shirogane please report to mall security. Your uncle is waiting for you.”

Ryou blushed as he spied various alien chat to each other, but none of them seem to realize the announcement was regarding him.

Gackon clicked his tongue. “Whelp, looks like my dad has already found your uncle.”

Ryou frowned and pointed to the speak. “That was your dad?”

“Yeah, he works as security for the mall,” Gackon said with a shrug. “So, guess we better go.”

“Yeah,” Ryou said as he took one last gaze over the mall. “Although, I’m kind of sad it’s over. I had fun exploring.”

Gackon then smirked as he gripped his backpack. “Well, if you don’t mind taking a bit of a risk there is one last fun thing we can do on the way to my dad’s office.”

Ryou raised an eyebrow.

Gackon gave a mischievous smile that rivaled Lance’s as he dashed ahead. “Follow me!”

Ryou obeyed and they dashed until they reached the top of a long staircase.

“We’re not taking the escalator?” Ryou asked.

“Nope,” Gackon said as he removed his backpack and reached inside, “we’re taking the fun way down.”

Ryou scratched his head. “Um..how exactly is walking down a stairway fun?”

“Who said anything about ‘walking’?” Gackon then brought out a small square and tapped a button on the side. The box then morphed and extended until it took the shape of a skateboard with no wheels and hovered in the air.

Ryou gasped. “You have a hoverboard?”

“Doesn’t everyone?” Gackon asked as he brought out two more squares. He once again pressed a button and two small helmets popped out. “Dad’s always saying I need to keep a spare helmet on me, glad I listened.”

“Whoa,” Ryou said as he took the helmet and slipped it on. “It’s fits perfectly.”

Gackon grinned madly as he put on his helmet and stepped on the hoverboard. “Alright, co-pilot, are you ready for take off?”

“You bet,” Ryou said as he stepped onto the board and placed his hands on Gackon’s shoulders. “This okay?”

“Yup and just make certain to hold on,” Gackon said as he used his foot to push forward. “It’s about to be a wild ride!”

With a yelp, the boys flew down the stairs. Ryou screamed at the stop of his lung, but held on as aliens jumped out of their way. He felt the air ruffle his bangs as they continued to dive down.

“This is awesome!” Ryou cheered.

“And we’re about to crash,” Gackon said as the stairs ended but they kept rushing forward. “Hope you don’t mind water!”

“What?” Ryou cried, but got his answer instantly.

A giant fountain appeared before them. The hoverboard crashed into the side of it. The boys were flung and sailed through the air before they crashed into the water. Ryou popped his head out, and laughed as Gackon’s head appeared.

“That was incredible!” Ryou cried as he splashed his arms in the water. “Man, thanks, Gackon.”

“No problem,” Gackon said as he climbed out. “Been ages since I did that.”

Ryou continued to laugh as he climbed out, removed his helmet and had his wet hair dangle over his eyes. “Are you going to get in trouble?”

“Oh, probably, but it’s still worth it,” Gackon said as he shook off the water. “What’s the point of being a kid if you don’t enjoy yourself?”

Ryou gave a small smile as he nodded. “Yeah,” he said. “Got to say it’s nice to have another kid to talk to.”

He loved Shiro and the rest of his paladin family, but it felt nice to play with another kid.

Gackon seemed to understand as he picked up the hoverboard and then pressed a button to revert it back to it’s original size. “My dad’s office is just around the corner.”

Ryou laughed as he found he was unable to stop smiling. “Coming,” he called.

This was becoming the best day ever.

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Shiro paced back and forth as he continued to glance forward, praying to see any sign of the boy. “It’s taking too long.”

“It’s a big mall,” Keith voiced as he crossed his arms. “It’s probably taking him awhile to get here.”

“True,” Romelle said as she sighed, “but waiting is hard.”

“No argument here,” Shiro voiced as he continued his pacing. “Maybe some of us should go looking-”

“Oh!” Coran called as he pointed. “There he is!”

Shiro froze and whirled around. Ryou was jogging up towards them, along with some Galra boy he’d never seen before. Shiro didn’t pay that much thought as he raced towards them.

“Ryou!” He kneeled and wrapped his arms around him. “Where are you been?! We were assuming-” Suddenly, Shiro realized he was very wet. He released Ryou and only then noticed the boy’s clothes were soaked and currently dripping onto the floor.

“Um, hey Uncle Shiro,” Ryou greeted sheepishly.

Shiro tilted his head as the others caught up. “Why are you wet?”

Ryou giggled. “Gackon and I crashed into the fountain.”

“What?” Shiro said uncertain at what he just heard.

“Well, it was after he insisted we ride his hoverboard down the stairs.”

“WHAT?!” Lance cried as he loomed over. “You got to ride a hoverboard?!”

“It was so cool,” Ryou said as he tossed his hands up in the air. “Gackon took me to the arcade and then we went to the food court-” He trailed off. “Gackon?”

Ryou looked to the Galra boy and frowned.

Gackon’s jaw had hit the floor and was rendered speechless as he pointed to the paladins. His eyes were sparkling, as he turned to Ryou. “Y-your uncle is one of the paladins?!”

“Um..yes?” Ryou replied.

“Why didn’t you tell me?!” Gackon cried as he reached into his backpack and brought out a tiny Hunk action figure and a small tablet. “I’m a huge fan! I’ve must have watched your show a hundred times!” He staggered over to Hunk. “You’re my hero! Can I have your autograph? PLEASE?!”

Hunk looked dazed until he blushed and nodded. “Uh, yeah, sure gladly..um?”

“Gackon,” the boy replied as he hugged his Hunk action figure. He looked ready to cry as Hunk sighed the tablet. “This is the happiest day of my life!’

Ryou blinked in confusion. “Show?” 

He looked to Shiro for an explanation, but found he could only reply with a blush. Technically it had been the clone not him that did the show, but the memories of the event were still there. Ryou then glanced to Keith for an explanation, but all he did was shrug his shoulders.

“I don’t get it,” Ryou said.

Coran coughed as he kneeled. “I saved the recordings. I’ll show them to you later, my boy.”

Shiro made a mental to ensure those recordings were destroyed as he returned his attention to Ryou. “So you crashed into a fountain?”

“After riding the hoverboard,” Ryou added.

“Which sounds amazing,” Lance chided, but when quiet until Shiro shot him a look.

“We did go to the food court, but we didn’t find you,” Ryou continued, “but before that Gackon took me to his arcade.”

“They have an arcade?” Pidge asked.

“Not now,” Shiro said as he narrowed his eyes. “And before that?”

Ryou gave a sheepish smile. “Well, before I found Gackon, I left the store to follow this pet shop owner who had these neat animals.”

“And that’s how you got lost?” Allura asked.

Ryou nodded. 

Shiro felt his eyes twitch as he took a deep breath and massaged his head. Here he was worrying that someone that kidnapped the kid, but turns out Ryou had been having the time of his life.

“Shiro?” Ryou asked. “I’m really sorry.”

Shiro let out the air he had been holding in. “You’re grounded.”

Ryou winced, but didn’t look shocked. “For how long.”

“Until you’re twenty,” Shiro stated flatly.

Ryou paled as he gapped at him. “WHAT?! No way! That’s insane!”

“You should have considered that before you decided to wander off,” Shiro scolded. “You nearly gave us a heart attack.” He tugged at his hair. “If my hair wasn’t already white it would have..”

Giggles cut him off. Shiro turned his head. Lance had covered his mouth, but was poorly able to conceal this laughter.

“He he, sorry,” Lance said, “but man you sound exactly like my mom when my sister got lost. He he!”

Shiro glared as he crossed his arms. “I’m glad I amused you.”

Keith chuckled and didn’t stop as Shiro turned to him. “It is a bit funny,” he admitted.

Before Shiro could debate the issue the office door opened and Varkon stepped out.

“Alright, so did the kid show-” He blinked and stared at the Galra kid. “Gackon?”

“Hi, Dad!” Gackon said.

“DAD?!” the group, except for Ryou, cried in unison.

Hunk pointed to Varkon and then back to Gackon. “So..you’re Varkon’s kid?”

“Yeah,” Gackon said and then froze. “Wait, you know my dad?” He turned to Varkon. “Dad, you know them?”

Varkon coughed into his hands. “Yes, well, who do you think organized their first show here?” He arched an eyebrow as he crossed his arms. “More importantly, did you ride your hoverboard down the stairs and into the fountain, again?”

“I wore my helmet this time,” Gackon said as he gave a salute.

“That doesn’t mean you should be doing it,” Varkon scolded.

Shiro could hardly believe what he was seeing until he felt a tug on hi pants. He glanced down and saw Ryou giving him a shaky smile.

“So...you really didn’t mean until I was twenty...Right?”

Shiro sighed as he shook his head.

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“Alright, hold still,” Lance instructed as he held up his phone. “Aaaannddd...got it!” He held up the phone and showed it to Ryou and Gackon. “There perfect photo of you two.”

Gackon grinned as he looked at the photo. “Nice! Can I get a copy?”

“I’ll see if I can send one to your dad,” Lance said as he tapped on the screen.

Ryou giggled, but then stopped laughing as Shiro shot him a look. Thankfully, he had calm down, but it was cleared he was still annoyed about the whole thing.

“Don’t worry, he’ll laugh about it later,” Lance insisted, although Ryou had doubts.

With that said, Ryou didn’t regret getting lost. He had fun with Gackon and it got him out of clothes shopping. Allura had bought the clothes that would have most likely fit him, and after Ryou had tried them out, it had proven to be true.

The only sad part of having to say goodbye to Gackon, at least for now. Hence why Lance decided to take a picture for Ryou to remember the whole thing by.

“If you lot are done causing a ruckus in my mall,” Varkon stated as he crossed his arms, “don’t let me keep ya.”

Gackon dropped his smile as he raised an eyebrow. “Wait, Dad, aren’t you going to ask them to sign your poster?”

The paladins paused to stare at Varkon curiously. Even Shiro dropped his annoyed frowning to blink. “Poster?” he asked.

Varkon choked and blushed as he looked to his son. “W-what are you talking about?”

“Your poster?” Gackon said. “The one you keep in your locker?” He looked to the paladins. “Dad and I watched the Voltron Show together. He’s a bigger fan than me!”

Hunk smirked as if he had been given the ultimate prize. “Oh, really?”.

“Yeah,” Gackon continued. “He even has actions figures of-”

“That’s enough of that,” Varkon chimed him as he covered Gackon’s hand with his mouth. “Kids...they uh..say the strangest things!”

“Sure they do,” Lance said. “Just admit that you like us.”

Varkon glared as Lance and Hunk laughed. Gackon wiggled out of his father’s grasp and walked over to Ryou. “Sorry you have to leave so soon. I had a blast.”

“Me too, and thanks for the help,” Ryou said as he offered a hand. “I’ll try to come back sometime.”

“You better,” Gackon laughed. “You’re a great partner for riding down the stairs with.”

“It’s not a hobby you should be getting into,” Varkon scolded. “Just wait until your mother hears about this.”

Gackon merely shrugged as he looked to Shiro. “Don’t be too hard on Ryou. He honestly didn’t mean to get lost.”

Shiro sighed and offered a smile. “We’re going to have a talk about that, but thanks for helping him.”

Gackon beamed at that and enthusiastically waved to the group as they left the mall and Ryou was smiling as he waved back.

Before long, he was back on the Black Lion with Shiro. Ryou twiddled his thumbs as he sat next to his uncle. He hadn’t said much since they got back. Ryou wished he could talk to him, but he didn’t want to push his luck.

Ryou raised his head. Shiro was leaning back against the wall with both of his eyes shut. Biting his lip, Ryou lightly poked his arm.

“Uncle Shiro, are you asleep?” he asked.

Shiro cracked an eye, but he saw no spark of anger. “No, just resting my eyes. That trip took more out of me than planned.”

Ryou’s shoulders slumped as he meekly took his hand back. “Are you still mad at me?”

Shiro let out a deep sigh as he opened both eyes. “No, and I wasn’t that angry at you,” he said softly as he turned to him, “but I had been extremely worried. So, when I saw I had no reason to be, I was relieved but also upset that you did that.”

“You seemed more angry to me,” Ryou said softly as he stared at his toes, “but..I am sorry. I honestly didn’t think I would get lost. I mean...I’m not a baby.”

Shiro’s eyes softened as he reached out and ruffled Ryou’s hair. “I know that, kiddio, and I know you can take care of yourself, but we got a lot of enemies after us. You can’t just wander off without telling anyone where you are.”

Ryou blushed as he leaned into him. “Okay, but what if something happens and I get seperated from you without meaning to?”

Shiro opened and then shut his mouth as he grasped his chin with his robotic hand. “Hm...Pidge and Hunk may have a solution for that. I’ll talk to them later about it.”

“Oh, okay,” Ryou said. “So...you forgive me?”

“Yes,” Shiro replied with a small smile, “and I am glad you had fun.”

“I did,” Ryou said as he smiled, “and Gackon was super cool! He knew how to do all that neat stuff.”

“I have a feeling he’ll be a bad influence in some areas,” Shiro remarked as he shook his head, but still kept a crack of a smile. “Still, glad you made a friend.”

Ryou’s face brightened as he hugged his knees against his chest.

They sat in silence until Ryou asked “Am I really grounded until I’m twenty?”

Shiro drummed his fingers against knees. “Don’t get lost for a week and I’ll consider until you’re fifthteen.”

Ryou rolled his eyes as Shiro ruffled his hair and laughed at him.

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It was a few days later when Ryou found out what Hunk and Pidge had been planning. After dinner, Hunk dangled a black lion shaped pendant in front of him.

“Ta da,” Hunk declared as he shook it. “Like it?”

Ryou blinked as he took it and stroked the small lion face. “Whoa, this is cool,” he said as he flipped it around to look at the back. “Although, I never asked for a pendant.”

“It’s not really a pendant,” Shiro said as he sat next to him. “It’s actually a communicator.”

Ryou’s eyes widened. “Really?”

“Yup and it has a tracking device,” Pidge explained as she squatted and pointed to the button on the side. “Press here and we can hear you in our helmets when you speak.”

“So,” Ryou said as he frowned thoughtfully, “if I wear this you can find me if I ever get lost?”

“Exactly,” Hunk said as he crossed his arms. “We’ve been working on it for awhile, but wanted to keep it a surprise until now.”

Ryou grinned but then paused. “Wait, why is it in the shape of the lion?”

“Because it looks more cool that way,” Hunk said.

“And we thought it would make you feel more like you’re officially part of the group,” Shiro added as he wrapped his arm around the boy. 

Ryou smiled as he slipped the pendant around his neck. This meant he could speak to the others like he was a real paladin. He could be treated more like a team member.

“Thanks, I love it,” Ryou said as he stood up and hugged both Pidge and Hunk at once.

“You’re welcome,” Pidge said as she patted his hair. “In exchange, next time we’re at the mall show us where that arcade you found is.”

Ryou grinned as he clutched his pendant tightly. It was possible in the future he may get lost again, but at least know Ryou could find his way back home.


End file.
